Toronto Metal band CAYM in studio recording their 5th album - An interview with Jay 'Beard' Sarrazin

Caym is an aggressive, loud, kick ass, in your face Metal band from Toronto, Ontario, Canada and have just started recording their 5th album in NEW YORK CITY at SILVER CORD STUDIOS. The new album will be Produced by legendary Frontman/Producer JOE DUPLANTIER, the singer of (The wall of Sound) Gojira. I had to the opportunity to talk with Jay Sarrazin (singer/guitar) Evan Archer (guitar) Tiny Basstank (bass) and the bands newest member Steve “The Animal” Mitchell (drums) during a break from recording to pick their minds about a few things.

Greg: Hey guys, first off congrats on getting the opportunity to record at Silver Cord Studios and I hope things are going completely awesome for you in NYC. I am seriously pumped to hear the new music you are about to unveil to Metal fans worldwide. Tell us a bit about the band Caym and how it all got started.

Jay: Thanks so much for the kind words! We are very excited for everyone to hear our new album. Even though it is still in its early stages, it is shaping up to be a very special album. We couldn’t be more humbled to have Joe Duplantier working with us to give you all the best album we have ever released. As for Caym, it all started back in 2006 when Jay “Beard” Sarrazin and best friend Gord Laferla decided to start a new metal band. Throughout the years Caym hasn’t been able to lock down a full lineup until now. That being one of the hardest things for a band to do and stay as these days. There have been many members to come through the band, but the one constant is Jay “Beard” Sarrazin who started the band in 2006. After a decade of hard work, touring and constant searching/ pushing the band he found Evan Archer, Tiny Basstank (Deathpoint, A Sin For A Prayer) and Steve Mitchell (Burning The Day) who make up the band today. Basically we were all looking for the same thing in a band and band mates that we weren’t able to find anywhere else.

Greg: So often music refuses to fit neatly into one category. The best songwriters and musicians are like that; though taking inspiration from various traditions, they create songs that are very original. Your music is like that; Cayms’ sound draws from several genres. How would you describe your current sound? What Metal genre do you consider Caym to be grouped with?

Jay: Our goal with Caym was to always end the “sub-genre”. We look at ourselves as just a metal band. A band that is coming with high energy whether it be live or on album and a band that plays metal! We all grew up loving many different genres and not even all metal. We enjoy rock, pop, oldies, hip hop, jazz, extreme metal, singer songwriters and so many more artists and genres. We take lessons from all genres and styles of music and try to infuse it into our riffs and songs. Some songs might be simple and to the point, others will be all over the place, some with a chorus, some without. Screaming, yelling, singing, instrumental. You name it we want to try it. We always come back to our love for metal. And nothing can compare for us but we try to push our own boundaries and create new things and not be closed within a certain area. We want to be free, like music allows us to be. If we want to sing beautifully we will, if we want to scream in pain we will, if we want the music to speak for itself we don’t sing. So we try to give ourselves the biggest window of opportunity to create and explore where we can go. One thing for sure though, it always comes back to tasteful metal riffs for us! At the moment our new album is shaping up to show you a very diverse side of us. From clean guitars to shredding solos to heavy breakdowns to rock and roll and so much more!

Greg: Let’s talk a bit about your songwriting process. How does a song usually develop – do you first start with a lyric, melody, chord progression, or something else?

Jay: For us our song writing process is very open. Usually one of us comes with an idea or a riff or a subject to write about and it takes on a life of itself. All 4 of us are very creative individuals and its rare for us not to have ideas. When someone brings something small to the table, by next practice 3 of the 4 of us usually will have growth to that idea or project. So it gives us many alleys to walk down in the jam room. The best part of being a diverse music lover is you can attack music creativity from so many angles. We truly look at every song as its own individual and try to make it be its own individual. Let it grow by itself and on its own time. We don’t like to force anything out, we like our music to be natural. But we are never lacking any ideas. Our biggest problem is we are never satisfied, even if it’s great lol. We slave over it to make sure we are doing the best we can.

Greg: Do you begin writing a song in your head before you pick up an instrument?

Jay: Usually a melody will come into our heads and when that does we will pick up our instrument and try to work it out. Sometimes riffs happen while trying to figure something out. You have a vision of where you want it to go but mess up and then like that more. So we just let it come out naturally and let the song tell us what it needs.

Greg: I’m interested in your musical roots – which musicians and songwriters have been the greatest influence?

Jay: Our greatest influences would have to be a laundry list but here’s a couple from us all
Jay: Metallica, Pantera, The Beatles
Steve: Dream Theatre, Metallica, Meshuggah
Tiny: Operation Ivy, Killswitch Engage, Mudvayne
Evan: Lamb of God, Testament, Ozzy

Greg: What are your favorite albums?

Jay: Our 3 favourite albums each would probably be:
Jay: …And Justice For All – Metallica, Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band – The Beatles and Thriller – Michael Jackson
Steve: …. And Justice For All – Metallica, Metropolis PT2: Scenes of a Memory, Chaosphere – Mesuggah
Tiny: Mudvayne – LD50, Unity – Operation Ivy, Alive or Just Breathing – Killswitch Engage
Evan: Ashes of the Wake – Lamb of God, No More Tears – Ozzy, New Order – Testament

Greg: Are you into any other genres of music besides Metal?

Jay: Like I was saying earlier, we love all genres of music. Our tour van is full of so many bands and artists that we don’t have favourites anymore. From Slayer to The Beatles, Big and Rich to Notorious BIG, Metallica to Passanger and so many in between.

Greg: What do ya think about using the internet as a tool for promoting yourself & your music?

Jay: For this generation we feel like the Internet is the biggest way of connecting to people and keeping in contact with people. The problem is that everyone is on the internet so you can get lost in the cracks quite easily. For us, we still love the old fashion way of connecting with everyone. Touring and playing shows. There is nothing better than playing live and showing your heart in front of everyone to see. We work hard at our craft and we feel like it shows in our live performances. And to us there is no better way, even the Internet, to connect with fans!

Greg: What kind of show are we going to see after you guys come out of the studio and how much energy is put out at a Caym show?

Jay: We are constantly trying to build new shows and get new ideas for shows. We will have quite the back catalog after this album so we are really excited to mix it up. But we really want to show off our new material as we feel like it’s by far our best yet. So you can be ready for a lot of new Caym songs and more of our high energy live show! We are looking to up the anti every time we get on stage and show that we are a killer tight band.

Greg: What do you perceive to be the difference in the METAL that you listen to and the mainstream METAL that is played on TV and Radio?

Jay: We feel like metal today is becoming a fad almost at times. An original band will come out and do something cool and then 1000 bands will follow the exact recipe of that band and then it all becomes boring. Everyone is so focused on being the fastest player or most brutal or what ever and we feel metal has lost its song writing. So our goal right now is to bring back song writing to metal. To stop this 400 bpm and everything has to be difficult and extreme. We want to bring back good riffs, good songs, good albums! We want to play what is inside our hearts and minds. This is why we listen to more than just metal. To get a grasp of different ideas and knowledge.

Greg: Do you think that alot of the Metal bands have crossed the unseen line that goes between mainstream and underground by doing videos for the major music stations?

Jay: We really feel like Metal needs to be a mainstream style of music now. Metal is more popular and explored than ever and in our opinion it’s one of the hardest genres to succeed in. The work you have to put in to be in a metal band is crazy. You don’t have the mainstream to push you down the throats of hundreds of millions of people like pop or rap. It’s true love that succeeds bands. You need to really love it and bust your ass to succeed. So we think it’s time for metal to go full on mainstream and get the respect it finally deserves. Not just for the talent but the work ethic it takes to do it.

Greg: Would Caym ever take the plunge and make a video and if so would it be a concept video or a live performance?

Jay: Caym will definitely be taking the plunge to make a video. It’s a great way to show your bands ideas in other ways. It’s a great tool for the fans to see into your mind as well. Which is what a fan wants, to be closer to the artist. We feel like a video helps make another step in that direction. For what our video will be we haven’t decided yet.

Greg: North American Metal is often distinguished from foreign Metal and particularly Northern Europeon Death Metal. What do you think makes North American Metal unique in its own way?

Jay: Metal is always created by what is happening around you. It has always been a style of music where you can speak out. Speak your mind. Find acceptance in. So although we don’t have the extreme political problems as some countries or religious problems, we still take from our own problems and there are many to choose from here in Canada. For us, we like to make our music about us. Our ride, our sacrifice, our dreams and goals. We have had so much love and respect and support that we do it for ourselves. Because it’s who we are inside. We sing about our problems and if that can help anyone than we are grateful. North America is able to get all styles of music from everywhere around the world. So North American music shows that diversity and knowledge. Being free in this country to express yourself is a big part of the North American style. It’s a divers style of metal. Just like our country. Just like Caym.

Greg: Are you opposed to using Keyboards or Sequencers in your music?

Jay: We don’t really have any place for keyboards yet but maybe we will find a place for them in the future. We never count anything out in our music and writing ideas. We might even have a tambourine on the next album. Who knows!

Greg: Do you feel that Caym has evolved through the time you have been together?

Jay: Not only do we feel like we have evolved every album, but we feel like we evolve everyday. We don’t want to stop learning or trying new things. That’s what excited us about music in the first place. We hope that this is not the final evolution. We hope to grow as musicians and become more knowledgeable about everything we do. From the writing to the business and everything in between.

Greg: Because Caym is basically underground right now but moving into the spotlight as of late. Do you find it difficult for you to market the band to become better known?

Jay: The thing about being an underground or DIY band is there is only so far you can get yourself. Eventually you hit a road block and realize it’s not possible to do alone. We aren’t saying you can’t be successful out on your own but it really depends on what your goal is. For us it’s world domination, and we won’t stop at anything to get there. For us, even though we are still considered underground, we have had endless work put in by so many people to help us. Including Joe Duplantier of Gojira. Another close friend to the band Taylor Bingley has been a mentor for us. His hard work has helped open so many doors for this band it’s not even countable. Also Johann Meyer for the work on this album! It takes hard work in many people’s ends to make a successful band. It starts with you, but you need a team to succeed to the top echelon of the metal world. So you need to take every opportunity to become noticed in this business to show yourself and to be better known.

Greg: How hard is it to establish a name for yourselves and what efforts does it entail?

Jay: The list it would be to explain that could go on for pages lol. We will say this, never say no if you can, prepare to spend every dime you have and more, don’t do it for money. It’s very rare that you make your own name go big. You need that team. You need to pay people who know what they are doing because it’s impossible to know everything and do it. Surround yourself with a hard working team and never let money be an issue. Do things right the first time. Invest in yourself and believe in yourself.

Greg: So when do we really get to hear something from the new album?

Jay: We are working non stop hours in the studio and living in Brooklyn NY right now to get it done for everyone. We will hopefully be releasing something in the summer for you all to hear. Our timeline isn’t in stone at the moment. We are really working hard to make one of the best metal albums ever. To make something special and give this one our undivided attention. We are being very picky with this one so it will take some time. But the end result will hopefully do it justice.

Greg: Well guys I thank you once again for taking the time to fill us all in on whats going on in the CAYM camp right now. New and old fans can check out all the blogs you have posted from NYC during the recording of the new album on your facebook page or youtube channel. I personally can’t wait til later this year after the album is released so we can check out the onslaught of CAYM shows that is bound to hit cities across Canada.

Jay: Thanks so much for the wicked interview! Had a blast doing it!!!!